SOUTH WHITEHALL TWP., Pa. — Lehigh County Controller Mark Pinsley had a slim lead over Bradley Merkl Gump for the Democratic nomination to 16th District state Senate seat, according to late results.
Pinsley led Merkl Gump 12,011 votes to 10,429, according to complete but unofficial tallies.
The district represents much of Lehigh County's rural and suburban communities and the northern part of Bucks County.
Pinsley tallied a commanding lead of 9,032 votes to 3,380 in the Lehigh County part of the district, according to complete but unofficial tallies.
But Merkl Gump led Pinsley in the Bucks County section, 7,049 to 2,979, with more than 90% of the vote counted, according to that county's election website.
The district now is represented by Sen. Jarrett Coleman, a first-term Republican.
He ran unopposed in the Republican primary this year after knocking off longtime incumbent Pat Browne in the 2022 election cycle in the newly redrawn district.
Democrats view the 16th District as a gateway to claiming their first state Senate majority in more than 30 years.
While Republicans hold an 11-percentage-point advantage over Democrats in voter registration figures, local Democrats outperformed at the polls during the 2025 election cycle as the Trump administration has grown increasingly uncomfortable.
A similar showing in 2026 would put the 16th in play.
Voters looking for a change may look toward Coleman and the state senate race as a place to voice their displeasure.
Coleman was one of Trump's opening speakers when the presidential campaign visited Allentown during the final days of the 2024 election cycle.
